Failed WD external drive -- is it the drive or the USB port?

[Jenstosh]

My 1TB Western Digital external drive has failed. It's out of warranty so that's not an option. After much internet research and trying many "fixes" that didn't work, I moved on to getting it out of its enclosure. But I need help on what I do next to determine if its the USB port that failed or the drive itself. This is my main backup of all my data (I know my fault for not having a backup of my backup) so I really need to get the data off of it if possible. The sticker on the drive says: SATA / 32MB Cache. My only computer is an HP Pavilion laptop. I am a novice in terms of computer hardware but can follow directions and do "techy" things pretty well. Your help is greatly appreciated.